The present invention relates in general to the automatic dispensing and distribution of balls and more particularly to table tennis ball distribution and storage apparatus for storing a plurality of balls and automatically projecting a single ball onto a table tennis table on command to provide an uninterrupted flow of play.
Table tennis (also known as xe2x80x9cping-pongxe2x80x9d) is a popular game in which persons on either side of a table exchange turns hitting a small ball back and forth to each other. Early in its development, table tennis evolved from an amateur game into a sport. Proficient table tennis players are capable of fast-paced exchanges and can sometimes keep the ball in play for long periods of time.
A large number of table tennis players, however, are amateurs and novices. When playing table tennis, these amateurs spend a disproportionate amount of time retrieving errant balls. This is not only time-consuming but also laborious. Another problem is that players may use a large number of balls during play because there is no convenient supply of balls nearby. Although balls may be placed in one""s pockets, this method both requires the user to access the balls and only allows a few balls to be stored. If the balls are stored away from the table, this requires the player to walk to a location away from the table to obtain additional balls. Thus, what is needed is a table tennis ball distribution and storage apparatus that provides an automatic and convenient supply of balls and is capable of automatically distributing the balls to a player as desired.
The table tennis ball distribution and storage apparatus and method described herein is designed to store a plurality of table tennis balls and automatically distributed a single ball from that store to a player. The apparatus and method alleviate the need for a player to constantly retrieve errant balls and the associated aggravation. In addition, the apparatus and method provides table tennis amateurs and novices with better enjoyment of the game since the flow of the game is not interrupted by the chasing balls or looking for additional balls.
In general, table tennis ball distribution and storage apparatus includes a number of systems and components that provide a simple, effective and efficient mechanism to store and automatically distribute a table tennis ball to a player on command. Specifically, the apparatus includes an integrated timing system. This integrated timing system simultaneously loads a single ball from a storage unit into a firing cavity, cuts power to a motor to keep the ball within the firing cavity, and arms a flipper system. On command the flipper system is released, the ball is struck and propelled along a preset trajectory to the player. This integrated timing system greatly decreases the complexity of the apparatus as well as increasing its reliability.
The components of the integrated timing system include an integrated ball support/feeder system, a flipper system, and an actuator system. The integrated ball support/feeder system both supports the balls stored in the storage unit and loads a single ball into the firing cavity. The flipper system is used on the apparatus to propel the ball in an exact and proper trajectory. An actuator system controls the timing of the flipper system. The apparatus is driven by an offset reduction gear system. The offset reduction gear system uses an offset worm drive instead of a direct drive to provide enhanced performance, reliability and compactness. Using a worm drive instead of a direct drive means that a smaller motor can be used and only two gears are needed.
The table tennis ball distribution and storage method uses the apparatus to store and distribute table tennis balls. In general, the method includes storing a plurality of table tennis balls using a tiered ball storage unit and automatically distributing a single ball to a player. In particular, a plurality of balls is loaded into the tiered ball storage unit and the balls are held up by a slider. An actuator switch is depressed causing the motor to stop. When an actuator button is depressed, the motor begins spinning and causes the release of the flipper system. This strikes the ball in the firing cavity and propels the ball upward. Meanwhile, the rotation of the motor causes the slider to align with a feeder cavity and obtain a single ball from the storage unit. The single ball is displaced by the slider from the feeder cavity to the firing cavity. At this point, the actuator switch is depressed by the flipper system and the motor stops, thus arming the flipper system and ball in the firing cavity. On command, the actuator button is depressed and the cycle begins again.